D.R. Horton to build regional headquarters here

Second largest homebuilder in U.S. eyes Race Track Road site for office

One of the biggest homebuilders in the United States, D.R. Horton Inc., will be requesting the St. Johns County Commission’s approval for an incentive package worth $142,218 to build a regional headquarters off Race Track Road.

County documents say the proposed 25,100-square-foot commercial office building will bring 84 relocated employees from Jacksonville when the building is completed. But the company anticipates growing to 270 employees within the next three to five years, its application said.

“Additional uses (of the headquarters building) will include office space for homebuilding, mortgage and title operations, as well as a home design center,” company officials said.

This project is an expansion of the existing office at 9456 Phillips Highway in Jacksonville.

According to several websites evaluating U.S. homebuilders, Horton, founded in 1978 by Donald R. Horton, is now the second largest homebuilder in the country by revenue. The company has already built 1,143 communities, according to Donald Tomnitz, chief executive officer of the Fort Worth-based company.

This application was submitted under the “New Industry” category of the county’s Business Incentive Program, which county documents say makes it eligible for expedited permitting and an economic development grant of up to 100 percent of its impact fees and four years of property taxes paid.

“Completion of this project is anticipated by the second quarter of 2014,” the county’s assessment of the application said. “The first annual grant payment would be anticipated during Fiscal Year 2016.”

The total value of the capital improvements — meaning the building — is estimated at $2.6 million, with the property it’s on estimated at $300,000.

The company would pay $13,754 in property taxes and $3,364 in tangible business personal property tax per year.